She braced for it, and nodded. “No kidding. You okay?” she asked him quietly.
“Wholly.” He cupped the side of her face. She leaned into his palm, closing her eyes. It was just a moment, a second or two, then she eased away and carried the bundle to the big duffle by her desk.
“Now for your gift, Tish,” Bathin moved around the counter and stopped next to the ghoul. “Open your mouth.”
Tish did so. Bathin placed a small pebble on their tongue. “Swallow.”
Tish did that too. Bathin pressed his fingertips on Tish’s forehead. “Become,” he intoned.
Tish shivered and was no longer me. Tish was now a young person, maybe fifteen? Brown hair long enough they had to tuck it behind their ears but it still stuck up a little.
Tish’s eyes were soft brown, their skin several shades darker than my own fish-belly white complexion. Their chin cut a hard straight line and angled up to a killer jawline, their lips wide and rosy.
This Tish was of medium build, and if I were to think of them as an athlete, I would place them in wrestling or gymnastics.
“Is it comfortable?” Bathin asked.
Tish nodded and nodded, the glisten of unshed tears in their eyes.
“Good. Now do not disappoint me, or I will take what I have given.”
Tish swallowed, then turned their attention to me. “I will answer your questions now?”
“All right. Here’s the first one. Are you hungry?”
Tish’s short dark eyebrows ticked up.
“Truth,” Bathin reminded.
“Yes?”
Myra put a peanut butter and jam sandwich on the flattened brown paper bag in front of them.
They threw a quick look at Bathin, then lifted the sandwich and shoved half of it into their mouth in one go.
“Dang, dude,” Jean said, “That’s pretty impressive. Oh, and when I say “dude” I’m using it as a term of non-gender affection.”
Tish chewed twice, smiled, then shoved the other half sandwich after the first. Two more chews and that was that.
“Are you working for Goap?” I asked.
“I was?”
“Did you deliver the god weapons?”
Tish nodded. “I did?”
“Did you deliver the Queen’s ring?”
“Yes?” Here they glanced up at Bathin again. I could see the trepidation on their face.
“Did you steal the god weapons?” I asked.
“I…helped? I held? I put the boxes in the right places?”
Apparently ghouls were pretty round about in their speech patterns.
The door opened again. Odin, Frigg, and Crow strolled in. “How’s it going?” Crow asked. “Got any news to share?”
